Risk of AIDS after herpes zoster

In a closed internal medicine practice for homosexual men in Central Manhattan herpes zoster developed in 112 men between 1980 and mid-1986. In these patients the incidence of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was high: Kaplan-Meier survival analysis indicated cumulative incidences of AIDS of 22.8% within 2 years after herpes zoster, 45.5% within 4 years, and an estimated 72.8% after 6 years. Severity of zoster (relative risk, RR = 4.6), degree of pain (RR = 3.4), and zoster of the cranial or cervical dermatomes (RR = 2.2) were all associated with a poor outcome. Oral thrush, oral hairy leucoplakia, amoebiasis, and superficial (tinea) fungal infections also indicated an increased risk of AIDS among zoster patients. Oral thrush and oral hairy leucoplakia manifestations were diagnosed an average of 1.2 and 1.1 years, respectively, after the diagnosis of herpes zoster; thus zoster is an early indicator of an impaired immunity. Herpes zoster can be used as a predictor of AIDS and in AIDS risk groups should be regarded as a poor prognostic sign.